How will the judging work, then? We loose a day for that, and not everyone is there Fridays anyway due to school and work, so will the judging just be pushed through as quickly as possible on the two days, or what?

Judging will be done on Saturday. The details are being worked out by my Dept. Head, so check back again for updates.

If we're not familiar with An Cafe, and aren't going to the concert, is it still worthwhile to put it in or will it end up just wasting reg staff's time?

If you're not going to the concert or you're not interested in the band, you don't have to put the code in. I don't think it takes too much of Reg's time since you can enter the code in yourself. It does help with some statistics that allow Tony and I know how much interest is generated by the band and lets us plan the surprise for those who are big fans.

*blinks* MusicFest is a badged event and AnCafe's concert will be available to everyone with a badge. I don't see any tickets needed to go to their performance. Now "Meet the Guest" is a completely different story.

I thought you had to buy tickets. Can I walk in and out as I please so I can just come when AnCafe starts? I have to run tournaments for e-gaming so I don't know if I can sit through the whole thing until they play.

Wait can I triple department staff? I'm going to be e-gaming and I'm already video programming. Can I do some musicfest too?

Again, MusicFest is a badged event. If you have a badge or if you are on staff and the concert doesn't conflict with your duties, you can go to MusicFest.

There will most likely be a line to get into the Civic for An Cafe's concert but yes, you may enter or leave the Civic during the concert.

I am unsure what you are saying when you say "triple department staff". You don't have to be on staff for MusicFest to attend the concert. And really, if you were already on staff for two other departments, you will be denied staffing MusicFest. Too many hats and all that.

Well now I know what to be careful of since I'm staff j/k. good luck with the line!! as much as i want to go i might sell my tickets to some japanese (from japan, none of you japanese americans!!!) people if i get some and i see they dont. I'm not big on wasting someone's trip from Japan to America

*blinks* MusicFest is a badged event and AnCafe's concert will be available to everyone with a badge. I don't see any tickets needed to go to their performance. Now "Meet the Guest" is a completely different story.

Just a quick question, since there's a little confusion. Does people who work at an event like "Maid Cafe" or "Black and White Ball" count as staff or just volunteer?

Actually, for Maid Cafe, anyone who works on this particular event other than the Department Head and her second will be considered "VOLUNTEERS" due to the number of hours Maid Cafe is open for.

In order to be staff, you must work the required minimum number of hours at the convention. Maid Cafe does not offer the minimum number of hours and thus does not have "staff" but has "dedicated volunteers".

Oh, okay, thank you! This will be my first time at Fanime so yeah . . . [I don't live around San Jose]

No worries! I would suggest, if you can, to buy a full badge and pre-register for Fanime. Pre-reg lines tend to move more quickly than the "single day" badge lines which can take more than 3 or 4 hours.

Thanks for your input. As the Division Head of Extravaganzas for this year's Fanime, I'm still picking up feedback on all my departments, including Maid Cafe. I've been reading and following a bit of the discussion going on on this thread and it's been a bit educational. Tony, Sydney, and I will definitely talk about some of the opportunities to improve this year's event. I know that there was a lot of miscommunication that occurred last year and I am trying to prevent that from happening this year.

I can understand if you do not want to reiterate a lot of points brought up on this particular thread but please feel free to contact me at extravaganzas@fanime.com for any thoughts or concerns.

I don't want you to think that Tony and I aren't listening to what's being said on the boards and/or ignoring the problems.

We got down to the last bit of negotation (I started drafting the contract with our terms) but they decided they needed to focus on their fanbase in Japan, first. My guess is they'll be releasing new material soon and need to rally their fanbase before anything else. I can't blame them; frankly, I was happy they even considered us!

I'm awaiting confirmation on another band, more indy, that's been mentioned here. Hopefully we'll have things signed and announced mid-late january.

And then I'm booking the most awesome act ever for my own personal amusement. ... well, not really; that's irresponsible. But if money were no object...